Dispensing device



June 9,1942. fc. c. Dmoz Em. I 2,286,065

DISPENS ING DEVICE Filed Sept. 26, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet l 26'/ 0 6 /92 4aJ0 l //f20 76 15 1 66 5 z l 53 4 f5/g l |,Ir (J: 36* J8 Il 14 44./ ,1.40 72 100" /95 48' .a4 70 O l l l 2s' 8 i 102 22' 22 '16' 1s June 9,1942. c. c. pAJoz Erm.

DISPENSING- DEVICE Filed Sept. 26, 194() 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June9, 1942 UNIT E Di STATE PATEN QF F ICE DISPEN SING DEVICE i' ConstanteCarlos D'ajoz andRen Eduardo Dubois,` Buenos Aires; Argentina InArgentina 7 Claims.

Thepresent invention relates to, dispensing devicesandin. particular to`a device. for dispensingtoothpicks under. highly hygienic conditions.

Thefwooden Ytoothpicks, commercially available atthecpresent timemay, beroughly dividedinto. two: classes, namely the round or machinenfishedztype andfthe hat or rough-split type-. Thev formerarefspindle-shape bodies ofuniform size and shape, and as the, ends arethinner than theV middle and,.therefore, are separated Whenfthetoothpicks `are inbundles, the roundtypefreadily lends itself toautomatic dispensing andfdevices;` for this purpose have already beenproposed Toothpicks of the ilat type, however, are. subject tovariations as tolength,.widthandathickness, have-rough surfaces and;pack. together tightly when bundled, so; that the;` dispensing ,devicesdesignedfor the. better, round'ftype have been found quite unsuitable,for the iat` type, and up to the present: no; successful dispensing;device forflat typetoothpicks is known.

It will be; obvious that the; atztype of g toothpick is much cheaperthan the round, and'. in. spite of its lackof finish; isv more suitablefor people whose teeth-are. so closely set as-l to` make-- the use oftheround type diflicult or positively, harmful to the gums. Forthesereasons, the flat type has found considerable favour amongrestaurantproprietors and the like, butowing to the lack of a` suitableclosed dispensing device, the flatl toothpicks are-usually placed inopen'` glass or the likexcontainers or4 tubs, and are thus; exposed toall the dirt, dust, germsandisimilar pollutions which theyvarelikelytoreceive from the'atmosp'here or from the handsof customers` orwaiters;

The principal object of our invention is, there fore, to provide adispensing device adapted: particularly to dispense fiat typetoothpicks, and comprisingY a substantially completely enclosed"lmagazine for containingV the toothpicks` and means operable'from outsidethe device for dispensing the toothpicks one by one through a narroworice communicating` with the magan zine.

A further object of `thepresent invention is to provide a dispensingdevice adaptedfparticularly, though not exclusively',y to dispense lflattypeV toothpicks and comprising av housing` includingl a mechanismchamber containing reciprocable actuating and' operative members springurged to a normal position, and a magazine chamber: which is preferablyseparable and contains guide means against which a bundleofto0thpicksis`adapted to be-.yieldablyi held; and compression August 21, 1940 (Cl.S12-78) means'adaptedto beactuated by said mechanism tocompressftheybundle; said mechanism comprisingaA dispensing nngeradaptedto move a single toothpick through a dispensingforice in a;lid-sportion of "saidhousing Other objects and 4advantages of ourinvention will become apparentv in the course of` the de'- taileddescription.

In the drawings:

ofcourfn'ovel dispensingfdevice.

Fig; 2v is afpla-n View ofv the-device of` Fig. 1 with the lid removed.`

Eig. 3 isfa section along the-line-III-III- of 115;? Fig: 2.

Eig..y 4 is a perspectiveviewof a separable magazine chamber.

Fig.. 5 is a perspective Viewl ofav mechanism chamberwith thelidmremoved.v

Fig. 6 is aperspective View 'offa preferred form oil-actuating andoperative` members, and

Fig. 7 is a perspective View showing the under side of a-vlid portion.

Witlr reference to thev drawings, our novel toothpick dispensing devicecomprisesa housing I6; preferably with rounded ends Vas'shown,containing a magazinechamber I2 and a mechanism chamber HandhavingV aVlid portion Iii, a bottom wall I'6-,- I6v andrside wallsI'I, Il".

. In the embodimentillustrated, the maga-zine chamber is-imade separableand isdefined by the sidefwall IYI, a `base portion I8,l best seen inFig. 3, and upperl and lower angular guide members 22. The mechanismlchamber I4 is dened by i th'eside-wall I'I, thebottom Wall I6.and thelid` I5. The bottom-wall I6 has a portion I6 pro jecting.beyond the sidewall I'I andextending to the:side-wall I'If so'as to underlie the baseI6 ofthe magazine chamber in the assembled con fl (L di-tion-ofthedevice.-

Theangular guide members: 20, 22 are securedV as-` by soldering` attheends of their arms to the inner facefofthe sidewall I'I. ofA themagazine chamber- I2- in superposed spaced relation with 4. theirangles` directed towards the mechanism chamber III and bisected by thelongitudinal center line` of the device. The angular guide membersv 20,22 have projecting` from their vertices, upper and.- lower anchoragemembers 26, 28 directed outwardlyfof the magazine chamber, so that, inthe assembled condition of thel device, saidanchoragemembers extend intothe mechanism chamber III,V TheA free ends of the anchorage members haveslots 26', 28' formed in them: which are; adaptedV to lreceive anchoringEig. lisaperspectve; view of one-embodiment` rings 3!) (Fig. 2) attachedto rubber bands 32 which partially embrace a bundle 24 of toothicks,shown in Fig. 2 as of the flat type, although it is to be understoodthat our dispensing device may also be used for round type toothpicks orfor bundles made up of both types intermixed. The elastic bands 32 actto urge the bundle against the inner faces of the angular guide members20, 22, whereby the bundle which normally is of substantiallycylindrical contour is deformed to conform with the angular portion ofthe guide members in contact with the bundle. The rubber bands 32 arepositioned on the bundle so that the one band lies below the upperangular guide member 20 and the other band lies above the lower angularguide member 22, when the bundle is introduced into the magazinechamber, so that the bands lie clear of the base I6 and of the lid I5.To prevent the upper band from slipping down and also to ensure that itshall embrace as large a portion of the periphery of the bundle aspossible, we provide a pair of projecting studs 34 on the upperanchorage member 28, directed away from the base I6. In charging themagazine, therefore, the bundle of toothpicks 24 with the bands 32 inposition is placed in the magazine chamber I2, with the rings 36 facingin the direction of the anchorage members 26 and 28. The ring of thelower band is then taken, the band stretched and the ring slipped intothe slot 28 of the lower anchorage member 28. Thereupon the ring of theupper band is taken, the band is stretched until it can pass over theupper anchorage member 261, the band being then positioned between thetwo studs 34 and the ring finally slipped into the slot The magazinechamber likewise comprises a pair of compression arms 36, 36' secured tothe free ends of a U-shape spring member 38 attached to the inner faceof the side wall I1 as by means of supporting members 40, 40'. Thecompression arms project outwardly of the magazine chamber I2 betweenthe upper and lower angular guide members and are inclined towards eachother inwardly of the chamber I2. The arms 36, 36 are provided withinner contact surfaces 42, 42 and at their free ends with outwardlyoffset cam fingers 44, 44 and are adapted to be moved inwardly of thechamber on operation of the device as will hereinafter be explained. Thearms 36, 36 may also be provided on their surfaces nearest to the sidewalls of the housing with resilient buffers to deaden the knock whichmight be produced when the said arms are forced outwardly during thedispensing movement of the device as explained below.

When the magazine chamber is constructed to be separable from themechanism chamber, as shown in the drawings, locking means mayconveniently be provided for locking the magazine chamber to themechanism chamber in the assembled condition of the dispensing device.For example, locking plates 94 may be provided xed to the free ends ofthe legs of T-shape resilient members 96 secured to the inner surfacesof the side wall I1 of the magazine chamber. The

' locking plates 94 are arranged to project beyond by the side wall II'and the upper angular guide member 20 of the magazine chamber, and isperforated to provide a narrow dispensing orice 92 located so that inthe assembled condition of the device, said dispensing orifice will lieover the angle defined by the vertices 20', 22' within said magazinechamber I2. The thick portion I4 has near the end remote from themagazine chamber an opening through which a hollow actuating plungermember 62 is adapted to pass freely. One end of said plunger member isoutside the mechanism chamber and has a threaded portion 64 (Fig. 6)adapted to receive a button 66. At its other end the plunger member 62has secured to it a cam member 54 having a curved portion 60 partiallyembracing the plunger member, and a pair of wings 55, 55 which in theassembled condition of the device project towards the magazine chamber.Said wings are inclined towards each other both horizontally orcrosswise of the cam member 54 and vertically or towards the verticalplane through the longitudinal center line of the device, and have camsurfaces or edges 53, 58 respectively, extending between the upper andlower edges of the cam member. Thus the gap between the upper freecorners of the wings 55, 55' is narrow enough to cause the cam fingers44, 44 to move to their position of greatest approximation, as will behereinafter explained, while still of suflicient width to clear theupper anchorage member 26 and its associated rubber band, whereas thegap between the lower free corners of said wings is considerably wider.

The cam member 54 is strengthened internally by a bridge piece 56 towhich a dispensing finger 52, having a at 52 formed on its free end, isadjustably secured as by nuts 53 (Figs. 2 and 3). The cross-bar 5I ofthe bridge piece 56 may, ii necessary, be cut back as shown at 49 so asto allow the cam member 54 to pass beyond the upper anchorage member 26during the upward travel of the plunger member 62. The plunger member 62is adapted to move slidably over a guide rod 68 secured as by screwing,to a base plate 'I0 fixed to the bottom wall I6 of the housing anddisposed on the center line thereof against the curved portion of theside wall I4. A compression spring I2 surrounds said guide rod and urgesthe plunger member 62 and the attached cam member 54 and dispensingfinger 52 towards the lid I5 of the housing. Said lid may be provided onits inner surface with a resilient cushion 98 (Fig. 7) to deaden theknock produced by the striking of the cam member against the lid. Saidcushion may conveniently be secured to the lid by angle iron fasteningmembers 82, 82', having tapped holes 84 adapted to receive securingscrews 86 (Fig. 1) passing through corresponding holes 88 (Fig. 5) inthe side wall I'I, for normally securing the lid, to the housing. Ifdesired the screws 86 may be sealed or otherwise protected fromunauthorized interference.

To prevent the dispensing finger 52 from accidentally swinging out ofalinement with the vertices of the angular guide members 20, 22, weprovide lateral limit members 50 extending longitudinally of the housingfrom transverse brackets 46, 46. Said limit members may have extendingtherefrom intermediate stop members 48, 48 adapted to bear against thebundle of toothpicks at points intermediate the angular guide members20, 22. Each stop member will therefore be parallel to and verticallyalined with an arm of the angular guide members.

If the dispensing device be taken in the assembled condition shown inFig. l, it may be charged by pressing the locking plates 94 inwardlyuntil they disengage the slots 98, and withdrawing the magazine chamberl2. A bundle of toothpicks, previously prepared and held together byrubber bands such as 32, with the rings alined longitudinally of thebundle, is then inserted in the magazine chamber between the side walll1 and the angular guide members 20, 22. The bands 32 are then stretchedand the rings anchored as previously explained and the magazine chamberreassembled -to the mechanism chamber. When the magazine chamber is soreassembled, the compression arms 36,35 extend into the mechanismchamber passing between the transverse brackets 46, 46', so that the camfingers 44, 44' lie vertically below the free edges 58, 58 of the wings55, 55 ofthe cam member 54, which will be held at the upper end of itsstroke, against the lid l5 by the action of the spring 12.

To extract a toothpick, it is necessary to depress and then release theplunger 52. Depression of the plunger causes the cam member 54 to bemoved downwardly past the cam fingers 44, 44', the dispensing finger 52likewise moving down between the limit members 5B. The length of thedispensing finger isy such that it projects into the magazine chamberslightly beyond the ii vertices of the angular guide members and is thusin contact with the periphery of the bundle 24.

As the cam member 54 moves down, the cam surfaces or edges 58, 58contact the faces of the cam ngers 44, 44' nearest to the side wall Ilof the housing, and owing to the inward inclination of said cam edges,cause the compression arms 36, 36 to approach one another, thus causingthe contact surfaces 42, 42 to squeeze that part of the bundle 24 lyingnearer to the mechanism chamber. The parts are so arranged that the saidContact surfaces push the major portion of the bundle towards themagazine chamber and also thin down the portion lying within thevertices of the angular guide members 20, 22, so as to present onesingle toothpick to the free end of the dispensing finger 52. Maximumcompression of the bundle ltakes place when the plunger member 52 isjust about to reach the end of its down stroke. As the plunger reachesthe limit of its down stroke, the upper portion of the cam edges 58, 58clears the cam lingers 44, 44', thus allowing the compression arms 35,36 to spring apart and release the bundle, and at the same time take upa position between the upper edges of the wings 55, 55' and the sidewall I1 of the housing.

On releasing the plunger, it together with the cam member 54 and thedispensing finger 52, is moved upwardly by the action of spring 12, thewings 55, 55' passing between the compression arms 35, 36 and forcingthese apart to relieve the bundle 24 of all pressure except that of therubber bands 32, which is suflicient to hold the single toothpick(presented to the dispensing finger as described with reference to thedown stroke of the plunger), against said dispensing finger withsufficient pressure to allow the finger to push up said single toothpck,and to cause the toothpick to be guided by the angular guide members soas to pass through the dispensing orifice 92. The toothpick is notejected through said orifice but merely raised so that it protrudes asufficient distance to enable it to be seized and removed from the'dispensing device by hand. The resilient buiiers |00 prevent anyundesirable noise or clicks being produced when the arms 36, 36 areforced apart.

When the plunger and its associated parts are about to reach the upperlimit of their travel, the wings 55, 55 clear the cam ngers 44, 44 thuspermitting the compression arms 35, 35' to move into their originalposition under the action of spring 33, so as to lie within the path oftrave] of the lower portions of said wings.

If desired the device may have a felt, cork, rubber or the like dampingcoating m2 applied to the outer side of the bottom wall l, l5. Likeuwise a lightly spring pressed cover (not shown) may be provided for thedispensing orifice as will be readily understood by those skilled in theart to prevent the entrance cf dust through said oririce when the deviceis not in use.

We claim:

1. A dispenser for toothpicks or the like comprising a container havingan aperture through which a toothpck may pass from the interior to theexterior thereof, angular guiding means for limiting the disposition oftoothpicks within said container, means for yieldably holding a quantityof toothpicks in a deformable bundle against said guiding means wherebyto impart an angular shape to one side of such a bundle, a reciprocatingdispensing nger adapted to engage a toothpick located at the vertex ofsaid side of such bundle and to move said toothpick longitudinally to apoint where it protrudes through said aperture and beyond the confinesof said container, a pair of compression arms disposed at opposite sidesof said vertex, a cam device ccnstrained to reciprocate with saiddispensing iinger and adapted to engage said compression arms and urgethe latter together, on the non-dispensing stroke of said finger,whereby to cause said arms to press and deform said bundle to narrowsaid vertex, and operating means, operable from the exterior of thedispenser, for effecting reciprocation of said ringer and said camdevice,

2. A dispenser for toothpicks or the like cornprising a container havingan aperture through which a toothpick may pass from the interior to theexterior thereof, angular guiding means for limiting the disposition oftoothpicks within said container, means for yieldably holding a quantityof toothpicks in a deformable bundle against said guiding means wherebyto impart an angular shape to one side of such a bundle, a reciprocatingdispensing linger adapted to engage a toothpick located at the vertex ofsaid side of such bundle and to move said tcothpick longitudinally to apoint where it protrudes through said aperture and beyond the confinesof said container, a pair of resiliently mounted compression armsdisposed at opposite sides of said vertex, a pair of cams constrained toreciprocate together and with said dispensing linger and adapted toengage said arms and urge the latter together, on the non-dispensingstroke of said iinger, whereby to cause said arms to press and deformsaid bundle to narrow said vertex, and a plunger, operable manually fromthe exterior 0f the dispenser, and adapted to reciprocate said cams andsaid dispensing finger.

3. A dispenser according to claim 2, the said compression arms being sodisposed at an intermediate point in the stroke of said cams that thecams are disengaged from said arms at the beginning of thenon-dispensing stroke of the dispensing ringer, are inpressure-establishing engagement with said arms during a part of thenon-dispensing stroke of said finger whereby to narrow the vertex of thebundle of toothpicks, and are disengaged from said arms at the end ofsaid non-dispensing stroke whereby to release the pressure on the bundleof toothpicks prior to the dispensing stroke of the dis-pensing lingerso that the toothpick engaged by the latter may be moved easily to aposition in which it protrudes from said aperture.

4. A dispenser according to claim 2, the said compression arms beingdisposed at an intermediate point in the stroke of said cams and each ofsaid pair of cams having two camming surfaces, one said surface beingadapted to engage a compression arm on the non-dispensing stroke andpress said arm toward and into engagement with the bundle of toothpickswhereby to narrow said Vertex and the other said surface being adaptedto engage said compression arm on the dispensing stroke and urge saidarm away from said bundle whereby to release the pressure on the latterso that a single toothpick may be slid easily by the dispensing fingerto aY position in which it extends through the aperture in thecontainer.

5. A dispenser according to claim 2, the said cams, dispensing finger,and plunger all being rigidly connected as a unitary structure, the saidplunger being hollow, the container having a post therein rigidly fixedto the bottom thereof, the post extending into said plunger to guide thelatter, and a spring coacting with the container and said plunger andadapted to move said plunger through the dispensing stroke thereof afterthe manual movement of said plunger through its non-dispensing strokeand to hold the plunger yieldably in position at the end of itsdispensing stroke.

6. A dispenser according to claim 2, the said container comprising twoseparable sections, one being a magazine Asection having associatedtherewith the said guiding means, toothpick holding means, andcompression arms, and the other section being a mechanism section,having associated therewith the said dispensing nger, the said pair ofcams and the said plunger; and, when the two said sections areassembled, the said cams and finger being constrained to reciprocateparallel to a tcothpick at the said vertex, and disposed to coactrespectively With the said compression arms whereby to narrow the saidVertex and with a toothpick whereby to dispense the latter.

7. A dispenser for toothpicks or the like, comprising a container havingtwo separable sections, one being a magazine section and the other beinga mechanism section, the-said magazine section comprising a pair ofspaced-apart angular guide members, anchorage members xed upon saidguide members and extending outwardly from the angle thereof, resilientmembers adapted to encircle a bundle of toothpicks and to be fastenedupon said anchorage members whereby to press said bundle against theinner sides of the guide members and impart an angular shape to one sideof such bundle, and compression arms disposed at opposite sides of thevertex of the angular side of said bundle; and the said mechanismsection comprising a reciprocating finger, adapted to engage anddispense a tcothpick disposed at the said vertex, a pair of cams adaptedto engage and press said compression arms against the bundle whereby tonarrow said vertex, a plunger for operating said nger and cams in unisonand a pair of Vertical wings which when the said sections are assembled,are disposed between said angular guide members, and extendsubstantially in planes common to said members whereby to assist insupporting the bundle of toothpicks against the tension of the saidresilient members, the parts in both said sections being so arrangedthat they assume the proper operating relationship when the two saidsections are moved together in a common straight line when beingassembled.

CONSTANTE CARLOS DAJOZ.

REN EDUARDO DUBOIS.

